Inflatable protective structures

ABSTRACT

Inflatable protective structures for sleeping, privacy and or containment are disclosed. A certain defined area that will consist of an inflatable sitting or sleeping area as well as a non inflatable area for such use as storage or changing. Said area to be enclosed by inflatable walls at two ends that are higher than the sleeping area high enough for a person to sit. Inflatable walls at each end act as support for a roof. Roof consisting of a light cloth like material which would enclose top, front and back and sides and bottom. Front and back of structure may include windows and a door for easy access. Alternatively cloth material could be partially removed with roof or walls only remaining. These Additional uses could be as a child or pet play pen and sleeping area. Unit could also be used without tent like covering.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to inflatable structures. In particular this invention relates to an inflatable tents and inflatable mattresses. This invention embodies both. The mattress itself acts as the sleeping or resting portion and acts as the walls to support the roof and walls.

2. Description of the Related Art

There are many attempts to make inflatable tents of various sizes, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,987,822 and 6,929,016 are two. Only a few have a mattress connected such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,822 and more as an after thought than as the actual structure of the tent. All tents comprised of basically pole like round inflatable poles joined together to create a pole like construction in which a usually waterproof material covers and a tent is created.

Most of these inflatable tents have appeared in the last decade because polyvinyl cloth (PVC) has become more popular and less expensive to manufacture. In addition to the advantage over solid pole tents is that inflatables blow up quickly and therefore set up time is minimal. In addition, storage and transport is much easier since most inflatables can be rolled up and put in a bag.

The down side to inflatable tents is that in order for the tent to be stable many inflatable poles have to be interconnected, in order to hold up the weight of a cloth material and to keep the tent from collapsing in high winds. Examples of these are U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,987,822; 5,761,852; and 6,929,016. In all cases, larger the tents the bigger the poles in order to create stability which in many cases still does not assure absolute stability. Smaller tents with smaller poles are even more susceptible to the elements of weather because the smaller the pole the easier it is for the weather to knock it down. In all cases sited the answer to stability in sited patented inventions is to add more inflatable poles. See Patent numbers above as reference.

In addition the larger tents on the market that are meant for group gatherings or mass sleeping centers suffer from legalese problems because if they are punctured or fall in the wind many people inside the tents can be hurt. Even though there are patents on these concepts marketability and use are still limited. In patents that mention a mattress as a sleeping devise, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,929,016 and 5,987,822 both refer to the mattress as an article that can be added but do not claim or use it as a structural necessity in which the tent needs to use to stay erect. The use of solid walls in this patent application and the use of an inflatable mattress for wall supports is a completely novel and a completely new approach to the problem of stability. In addition the main emphasis of this structure is the combination of both a structure and sleeping platform that are integral to invention itself.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The intention of the present invention is to provide a unique small individual structurally sound containment unit for both shelter, rest, sleep and storage that will work in casual as well as adverse environments that is portable and easily set up. In addition, due to the fact it is inflatable it is easily stored in a small bag or box and easily transportable.

An inflatable bed/tent unit in accordance with the present invention includes an inflatable bed structure that would be of approximate sizes of a standard bed and a height that will support inflatable walls at opposing ends with the size and strength enough to support a roof and walls. A canopy will cover this unit and can include screened windows and doors as needed or desired. In addition a cover will contain a zipper at a point where the walls start to curve and turn into the roof. This zipper will completely surround unit horizontally. Roof can be unzipped and removed and unit can be used as privacy area or as play pen for children or even pets. Unit could also have a netting cover that replaces roof for hotter climates and at night.

The value of this invention over prior art is that all other structures are concentrating on creating tube like inflatable poles that are then blown up and then expected to bear the weight of a canopy cover and the vagaries of the weather.

This new design uses the strength of the volume of the air mattress that is permanently connected to the walls to create a strong and cohesive structure that will both support a canopy and if properly attached to the ground will survive high winds.

In addition because it's predetermined size will be limited to the size of a large mattress plus small floor and less than six feet high the problems associated with wind will not effect it as dramatically like other tents small and large. A larger version can be made if the problems with wind and safety are addressed and tested for.

In addition to being used as a sleeping compartment its use as a play pen and mosquito netting has significant value especially in emergency situations and very hot climates.

Of greater value is convenience of a sleeping compartment that can be rolled up and packaged in a small bag or box and stored and transported anywhere. These units can be blown up with a manual hand pump or with an electrical blower. Thousands of these can be loaded on pallets and air dropped anywhere and anybody can blow these up to create emergency housing with both a bed, roof and storage area all in one. These units can also be used without the cover and be just used as a bed an all kinds of situations

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of inflatable portion of the bed/tent without the cover on it.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the bed/tent with the cover attached to unit.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of inflatable tent with roof removed.

FIG. 4 is a blown up view of ground support grommet attachments

FIG. 5 shows 4 embodiments that could or will be included. Shelf Box,

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows the best mode view of this inflatable structure 10 that includes both the bed 12 and the walls 14 and a small inflatable shelf 16 that can be added. Walls 14 are the inflatable walls and will be of approximate width to support a canopy and create stability for the entire unit. The height can vary but will normally be of the height in which a full size adult should be able to sit upright while sitting on the inflatable bed. In addition the top 18 of walls 14 will be rounded to create a roof like effect once a cover is installed.

Walls 14 width will be flush with the bed 12 in the back and can extend a foot or more if desired in front to create an area for standing, dressing or storing things among other uses. Bed 12 is the main support for the walls 14 and can range width and length in size from a single mattress to a king size but are not limited to that size only. The bed height 12 to be determined by size will normally be of approximate height of 18 to 20 inches but must be at least high enough to support the connected walls 14.

Ground flaps 20 are located at the 4 corners of the inflatable walls and are flaps that extend from the bottom of the walls and contain a hole the size of a ground stake in which all sides can be firmly attached to the ground. Additional flaps 20 at the peaks of the roof of the outer bed can be used with a cord that extends outward and to the ground and can be secured with a large nail or spike as additional way to secure unit to the ground. Shelf 16 can or can not be included and will extend from the wall 14 as a small inflatable box 16 at the same height as the bed 12 itself and will be of approximate size you would see as a side table next to any bed in a home.

Air valve 22 will be located on the back of the inflatable wall 14 approximately 24″ up for easy access and will be designed to accept the various types of blower sizes that are available on the market. This FIG. 1 one piece unit inflatable structure 10 will be manufactured as one inflatable unit in a PVC, poly vinyl air tight material that is created in a heat welded process much like air mattresses used for camping.

FIG. 2 shows a Cover cloth 24 covering the one piece unit inflatable structure 10 seen in FIG. 1. The cover cloth 24 can be made of various material that are normally used for outdoor tents. The cover cloth 24 will cover entire outside of unit creating additional structural integrity. Windows 26 will be of approximate size on both sides and will open and close and will include screens for bug control. Zippers 28 will be for access and will vary in size as needed. Roof zipper 30 will surround the tent horizontally at the height where the walls begin to become rounded. Flap holes 32 will correspond with FIG. 1

Ground flaps and roof flaps 20 so that flaps 20 will come out of flap holes 32 before ground flaps 20 are attached to ground thus insuring that cover cloth 24 canopy will not be blown off of one piece unit inflatable structure 10. Valve flap 34 corresponds to Valve 22 in FIG. 1 and is a easy access valve flap 34 designed to access the valve 22. It will be comprised of a cloth cover that can be opened and closed and secured by various means.

FIG. 3 is the a view of FIG. 2 with the roof removed. Walls 36 are what is left after roof in FIG. 2 is removed by unzipping roof zipper 30 in FIG. 2. Additional netting roof can be used as an additional element replacing tent cover top.

FIG. 4 is an exploded view of ground and ridge flaps 14 being the wall and 32 being the ridge flap where a re-enforced hole can be tied to a rope and a ground stake tied To the end of the rope and the wall secured to the ground. Additional exploded view demonstrates how ground flaps are connected to wall 14 and re-enforced hole at a 90 degree angle would be secured to the ground with a stake.

FIG. 5 is an exploded view of possible shelf 16 that would we attached to wall 14 And be filled with air like walls 14 and bed 12. shelf could vary in size and be for numerous purposes. 

1. Inflatable structure comprising: A. inflatable structure of approximate size of a bed used for sitting, sleeping or resting; B. permanently and structurally attached to for mentioned bed like structure are two inflatable walls rising vertically from the bed an appropriate height for adults from both the head and the foot of the bed; C. As a separate but joined element a tent like material cover will surround the platform and its walls; and D. as a separate but joined element a netting like material cover can surround the platform and it's walls or just the roof section.
 2. An inflatable structure according to claim 1, wherein the inflatable structure has a valve to allow the inflation of various sections of the structure to segregate portions of the inflatable structure in case of leaks.
 3. An inflatable structure according to claim 2, wherein A. said valves can allow separate sections to remain inflated if air is lost in other sections and B. air release valves can be included in bed, wall 1 and wall 2 to allow air to be released when deflating unit.
 4. An inflatable structure according to claim 1, wherein A. the front and back of both walls at the foot will have re-enforced flaps that will be used for ground stakes to securely attach to ground if needed; B. said re-enforced flaps will be of rigid material with a reinforced hole the size in which an appropriate metal or wood stake can be put through to securely attach tent to the ground; and C. additional flaps can be connected to head and foot of bed at outside top of peaks of walls and a rope attached to allow another spike at end to be attached to ground to allow further securing of tent during extreme weather.
 5. An inflatable structure according to claim 1, wherein A. attached to said wall of the inflatable bed at the same height as the top of the bed over the ground area of the structure can be attached an inflatable shelf much like a nightstand next to a conventional bed; and B. at the foot of the bed in the compartment side several plastic hooks can be evenly placed for use as a coat rack.
 6. An inflatable structure according to claim 1, wherein A. as a separate element the cover may be partially removed leaving only the walls; B. by doing this one can use the structure as a sleeping area or play pen for children or pets; C. as a separate element the fore mentioned cover that is partially removed may be replaced with a mosquito netting like material; D. as a separate element the total cover may be removed and a mosquito netting cover could cover the entire structure; and E. as a matter of practicality the cover could be removed entirely and the structure used as just an inflatable bed.
 7. A method for erecting an inflatable structure comprising the steps of A. unpacking the inflatable structure; B. laying out the inflatable structure so that the bed portion is on the bottom so as to engage the ground upon inflation; C. inflating the inflatable structure through available air valves with pressurized gas or gas mixture until the entire structure is inflated to full erection and at a pressure of at least XX pounds per square inch; D. driving stakes through the ground flaps located at the 4 corners of the inflatable walls and are flaps that extend from the bottom of the walls containing a hole the size of a ground stake in which all sides can be firmly attached to the ground.
 8. A method of packing inflatable structure: A. unsealing all air chamber valves; B. assuring side inflatable walls are folded inward toward center of structure; C. All air is removed from side walls by rolling deflated wall toward center of bed; D. entire structure is folded in half with front windows and back windows over lapping, then repeated again so that structure is approximately ¼ of inflated structures depth; E. Unit then is rolled in the direction of head to foot of bed and the end open valve allowing all excess air to be released; F. Unit is then stored in canvas bag. 